UBC PDA Socials for July!

It’s summer! The UBC PDA has a variety of socials coming up – from lunch meet up on campus to public swim at Kits beach – join one today!

If you’re nervous about finding us, or have any other questions about our socials, please e-mail Justin Hart, at justin.hart@mech.ubc.ca.

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Canada Day Fireworks social
When: July 1 at 7.30 pm
Where: 9 O’clock Gun at Stanley Park (map). Note: Location changed!
Details: Join your fellow postdocs to see the Canada Day fireworks from Stanley Park! Bring a lawn chair or blanket to sit on and a covered dish dessert or snack to share. Stanley Park is very busy during fireworks displays, so please RSVP in advance so we know to expect you. Come early and help us stake out a spot or meet Justin at 7:30pm sharp at the 9 O’Clock Gun. RSVP to justin.hart@mech.ubc.ca.

Lunch Meetup at AMS Student Nest
When: The first Thursday of every month at noon
Next date: July 7, 2016
Where: AMS Student Nest (map) – Meet in first floor near the entryway
Details: Join your fellow postdocs for a casual lunch in the AMS Student Nest food court. Reconnect with your colleagues across campus or make a new friend! If you’re nervous about finding us, drop the VP Social an email at justin.hart@mech.ubc.ca. No RSVP required.

Poutine & Bar Hopping on Granville St
When: July 8, 2016 at 6:30 pm, poutine at 7:15 pm, followed by bar hopping
Where: Start from Smoke’s Poutinerie – 942 Granville St, Vancouver, BC (map).
Details: It’s summer, so the bars on Granville St are a popular spot in Vancouver. We’ll start by grabbing some classic Canadian fare at Smoke’s Poutinerie, then do drinks at the bars on Granville St. If you’d like to do only drinks, meet us at Smoke’s at 7:15 pm. We’ll go to The Speakeasy, then see where our interests take us. Granville St is busy during the Summer, so you won’t find us unless you RSVP. RSVP to justin.hart@mech.ubc.ca.

Public Swim at Kits Pool
When: July 23, 2016 at 2:00 pm, drinks at 6:30 pm
Where: Kits Pool, 2305 Cornwall Ave, Vancouver, BC V6K 1B6 (map)
Details: Join us for a day at Kits Pool. Sit in the sun or swim to your heart’s content. Cost of admission is $5.86 per person. At 6:00 pm we’ll change out of our swim trunks and have dinner and a beer at Local on Cornwall. RSVP to justin.hart@mech.ubc.ca.

See you there!

Medical / Grant Writer Position available at the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS

BCHIV_Logo_Final-Horizontal-Web_0Do you enjoy writing? Have an eye for detail?

The BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS is looking to hire a Medical Writer / Grant Writer as part of their Addiction and Urban Health Research Initiative.

See the full job posting here [pdf].

If you are interested in this position, please contact the HR Coordinator at the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, at hr@cfenet.ubc.ca.

Additional job postings can be found on the Centre’s website: http://www.cfenet.ubc.ca/join-us/careers.

The 3 Minute Postdoc Slam of 2016 – Event Review!

This year’s 3 Minute Postdoc Slam was a great success! Over 40 postdocs, faculty, staff, and students gathered in the LSC3 lecture theatre in the Life Sciences Institute to hear 7 postdocs, from 7 different departments, present their research in only 3 minutes with the aid of a single PowerPoint slide.

3MPs review 1

This year we started out the event with a special guest talk from Craig Jones, winner of the UBC 3 Minute Thesis competition and a finalist in the Canadian National 3MT competition. He gave a fantastic and engaging talk titled “The War Lawyers”, and set the stage for a great afternoon of presentations.

Our first contestant in the competition was Dr. Elisa Wong from Pharmaceutical Sciences, who presented her talk “The story of a powerful mutant population”. Next up was Dr. Kais Dridi from Electrical and Computer Engineering with a talk on “How Can Nanotechnology and Nanostructured Materials Revolutionize Solar Energy Conversion Systems?”. Dr. Noushin Nabavi from the department of Urologic Sciences then presented her work “Understanding Mesothelioma: inter- and intra-tumor heterogeneity”. The last talk of our first half was “Reward cues and decision-making” by Dr. Mariya Cherkasova from the Faculty of Medicine. Following a short coffee break, Dr. Amir Sharafian from Mechanical Engineering spoke on “Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG): A Green Transportation Fuel”. Dr. Jennifer Rowland from Michael Smith Labs spoke on “Remote control: Bacteria modify epigenetics to take over your cells”, and our final contestant of the day was Dr. Carly Priebe from the department of Kinesiology who gave a presentation titled “Run to Quit”.

All our postdoc presenters were judged by our 3 judges: Dr. Cara Haney from Michael Smith Labs, Dr. Jonas Beaudry from the Allard School of Law, and Dr. Tara L Klassen from Pharmaceutical Sciences.  The judges evaluated each presentation on comprehension, communication and engagement, and made numerous comments about each presentation, which were given to the presenters following the competition. Prizes were awarded to the top three presentations as scored by our judges, as well as to the “People’s Choice” presenter, which was determined by the audience.

Following the presentations from our contestants, we had an excellent and informative talk from Dr. Tara L Klassen on the topic of communication – “Car Salesman or Professor: Communicating your Message”.  The event was finished off with a networking reception – good food, drink, and conversations!

3MPs review 2

3MPs review 3

Thanks to all that presented, and attended, in making the day such a success!

Congratulations to our award winners!

1st place ($100): Dr. Carly Priebe

2nd place ($75): Dr. Mariya Cherkasova

3rd place ($50): Dr. Jennifer Rowland

Peoples’ choice ($25): Dr. Elisa Wong

CAPS / ACSP Executive Election and Referendum

CAPS-ACSP

CAPS (the Canadian Association of Postdoctoral Scholars) is currently holding elections for the 2016-17 executive council.  The following candidates have been nominated:

Chair:
Dr. Mohamad Nadim Adi
Dr. Joseph S. Sparling

Vice-Chair External:
Dr. Nafisa Jadavji

Vice-Chair Communications:
Dr. Mónica Sesma-Vázquez

Vice-Chair Finance:
Dr. Pengwei Wang

Candidate statements can be found here [PDF].

Any postdoc that is a) associated with a Canadian institution (regardless of citizenship), or b) a Canadian citizen (regardless of location) can vote.  There will be an electronic vote for the position of Chair, to be held in conjunction with a referendum on changes to the CAPS-ACSP constitution (information on the proposed constitutional changes can be found here [PDF]). As there are no other candidates Dr. Jadavji, Dr. Sesma-Vázquez and Dr. Wang will be acclaimed to their respective positions.

You can vote at the Google form here:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1PDu9Plbel4yOSDkzrtENRWbqpsBE6q0znstxjbHLHp0/viewform?c=0&w=1&usp=mail_form_link

Voting will end at 5PM Pacific time, on May 31, 2016.

Additionally, the positions of Vice-Chair Operations and Vice-Chair International will be reopened for nominations. Nominations for these two positions are now due by June 7, 2016. Descriptions of these positions can be found in this document [PDF].

If you wish to run for either of these positions, please respond by email to operations@caps-acsp.ca indicating:

  • Your name
  • Your email address
  • The institution where you work as a postdoc
  • The position you wish to run for
  • A short (< 250 words) candidate statement that will be distributed to voters.

Thank you for your interest in the future of CAPS-ACSP!

PDA Socials for June

The UBC PDA has a wide selection of socials in June!
Come and Join us!

If you’re nervous about finding us, or have any other questions about our socials, please e-mail Justin Hart, at justin.hart@mech.ubc.ca

Bar Night at Biercraft
When: June 3, 2016
Where: Biercraft in Wesbrook Village at 8pm (Map).
Details: Meet with your fellow postdocs for a drink at Biercraft in Wesbrook Village. Biercraft has a wide selection of beers and an excellent menu. Grab a casual beer. Make a new friend.

Lunch Meetup at AMS Student Nest
When: The first Thursday of every month at noon
Next date: June 2, 2016
Where: AMS Student Nest at UBC – Meet in first floor near the entryway (Map).
Details: Join your fellow postdocs for a casual lunch in the AMS Student Nest food court. Reconnect with your colleagues across campus or make a new friend!

Escape Room with Bar Night
When: June 18, 2016 at 5:30 pm for 6:00 pm start (RSVP by June 11, 2016)
Where: Go Find & Seek (official website and map).
Details: Come try your skills in one of Vancouver’s hottest escape rooms. Optionally, at 7:00pm, we will hike over to Steamworks Brewery in Gastown for a beer and a bite. Those who wish to do only the escape room or only the brewery are welcome to do so, but please RSVP to Justin Hart for either event and indicate your preference.

Special speaker: Bobbi Lambright

Bobbi Lambright profile picPathways To Success

DATE: Monday, May 2                  

TALK + Q&A: 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM

MEET-AND-GREET: 2:00 – 2:30 PM

LOCATION: Room LSC3 (lecture theatre)

Please contact us if you have any questions!

In over three decades as a top leader in a wide range of business roles and environments, Bobbi Lambright has started companies, merged organizations and consistently delivered excellent customer service and shareowner results.  A former journalist, Bobbi has followed an unconventional career path to success and learned some important lessons along the way.  She has been recognized for her communication and leadership skills through national and international awards to companies under her direction.

Bobbi will join us on May 2nd to share some insights from her journey,  giving an insider’s view of what’s behind business trials and triumphs and offering ideas and suggestions on how to make opportunities out of challenges.  She will share some of the lessons learned from mentors, customers and employees and looks forward to a lively discussion following the presentation.

Speaker Biography

Bobbi was appointed Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer for ATCO Australia in July 2015. She has held progressively senior positions since joining the ATCO Group of Companies in 1986, most recently as President, Distribution Division, ATCO Electric in Canada. She is also Chair of the ATCO Structures and Logistics Board in Australia and is involved across the full spectrum of ATCO’s Australia based businesses. With her extensive experience in regulated utility operations, Bobbi is responsible for leading and delivering strategic growth initiatives of ATCO’s utilities and energy businesses Australia-wide, through her sharp focus on customer service and her development of competitive, cost-effective products and services.

You can add this event to your Google Calendar by clicking on the button below. Alternatively, you can subscribe to the entire calendar, with all our events, here!

UBC 3 minute postdoc slam: Present your research in 3 minutes to win!

3MPS 2016 details

DATE: Thursday, 26th of May

PRESENTATIONS (4 – 6 PM): Room LSC3 (lecture theatre)
REFRESHMENTS AND NETWORKING (6 – 8 PM): Room 1510

Our annual 3MPS is back! Engage the audience and tell us about your research in exactly 3 minutes, using one static slide. Top 3 presenters to win $100, $75 and $50 in cash!

Tara L. Klassen, an assistant professor in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, will join us to give a special guest presentation from 5:30 to 6:00 PM on communicating your research to the public.

Snacks and refreshments will be served from 6:00 PM in Room 1510.

If you would like to present at the event, please sign up by 19 May. Space is limited, so sign up soon!  Check out the rules and additional details of the contest here!

If you do not want to present, please still join us as an audience member! To attend, please register online, or at the door. Please contact The UBC PDA if you have any questions.

You can add this event to your Google Calendar by clicking on the button below. Alternatively, you can subscribe to the entire calendar, with all our events, here!

POSTDOC SOCIAL: Pub Quiz Tuesdays @ Mahony & Sons UBC

PubQuiz2016

Do you think you know it all? Is your head crammed with useless information that is waiting to be freed? Then this evening is for you! Join us for Pub Quiz nights every Tuesday at 7:30 pm at Mahony and Sons, UBC. It’s taco Tuesday and there are drink specials available. Please contact us if you have any questions.

You can add this event to your Google Calendar by clicking on the button below. Alternatively, you can subscribe to the entire calendar, with all our events, here!



New President’s Message

Alex 250pxI am incredibly honoured to be writing this message as the new President of the UBC Postdoctoral Association (PDA). I have to start off by giving a huge thanks to our outgoing President, Dr. Miranda Kirby. Her dedication and enthusiasm have greatly strengthened the PDA, particularly in the areas of peer networking and research communication. Under her leadership, the PDA developed the “Postdoc Talks” Seminar series, an opportunity for postdocs from diverse fields to present their research to non-specialist audiences. Her actions have increased the profile and reach of the PDA within UBC and the surrounding community. She now joins the ranks of the many fantastic PDA past-Presidents, and I am ecstatic that she has agreed to remain involved in the PDA and will continue to contribute her knowledge and experience during my term.

Over the past year, I have served as a member of the PDA executive committee. In this role, together with the PDA officers and other members of the PDA executive, I was involved with planning and executing a number of events, including the 3 minute postdoc slam (May 21, 2015), the 2015 Postdoc Research Day (September 22, 2015), and our Annual General meeting (March 30, 2016). I have also been involved with the PDFO, assisting with new postdoc orientation and sitting on an award adjudication panel. I have also been an active participant in the PDA’s social events, and have had the good fortune to be able to attend nearly all of the events, affording me the opportunity to meet other postdocs from a number of different faculties across UBC. I hope that during my term we will be able to ensure that other UBC postdocs are able to have the same great experiences I have had with the association.

On behalf of all UBC postdoctoral fellows, I would like to extend many thanks to the other outgoing PDA officers. It has been an honour and a pleasure working with each of you over this past year. Yun Zhang (VP Operations) – thank you for all your efforts in helping to ensure the smooth functioning of the PDA, Farzam Fotovat (VP External) – for your leadership with the Canadian Association of Postdoctoral Scholars (CAPS), Galen Wright (VP Communications) – for your efforts to increase the PDA’s social media presence and better reach out to UBC postdocs, Britt Drögemöller (VP Social) – for your tireless efforts to put on many great social events, and work with the new Google calendar to make it easier for people to see when and what events were coming up, and last, but certainly not least, Nima Mohtaram (VP Finance) – for keeping us on track with finances, booking rooms, and ensuring that all our events ran smoothly and on-budget. I’d also like to thank all the other members of the executive committee. Their input and assistance with putting on the PDA events was invaluable.

Now I would like to welcome our new officers! Zoe Riches will take over VP-Operations, Stefanie Vogt for VP-External, Jenny Chik for VP-Communications, Justin Hart for VP-Social, and Houra Loghmani Khouzani for VP-Finance. I would also like to extend a big thank you to all the people who have already expressed interest in joining the PDA executive team. I am excited to work with everyone, and I anticipate a fun and productive year ahead!

Finally, I would like to invite and encourage all of you to join the PDA executive committee as a volunteer. Membership in the PDA is open to all UBC fellows and associates, and all members of the executive team are invited to attend the PDA officers’ meetings, share ideas, get involved in planning and organizing our events, and advocate for postdoctoral fellows and associates at UBC. Please contact us if you want to be involved!

Cheers,
Alexander Smith, PhD
President, UBC Postdoctoral Association

UBC PDA Annual General Meeting 2016 (March 30th)

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Your vote counts! Join us as we elect the new PDA Executive Committee for the upcoming year on Wednesday 30 March at 5:00 pm at the Life Sciences Institute (LSI), Room 1330. No RSVP required.

The event will commence with reports from the past PDA Executive Committee members followed by short introductions of the new nominees, after which you can place your vote. We will end the evening with a reception with snacks and refreshments to welcome the new committee members.

Please contact contacting us if you have any questions.  You can add this event to your Google Calendar by clicking on the button below. Alternatively, you can subscribe to the entire calendar, with all our events, here!